ALABAMA EMPLOYEES OF MASTERBRAND CABINETS MAY BE ELIGIBLE FOR BENEFITS

October 04, 2018

Press Releases

For immediate release October 4, 2018ALABAMA EMPLOYEES OF MASTERBRAND CABINETS MAY BE ELIGIBLE FOR BENEFITSAUBURN, ALABAMA – Workers of MasterBrand Cabinets, Inc., a subsidiary of Fortune Brands Home & Security, Inc., Auburn, Alabama, who were engaged in activities related to the production of semi-custom cabinetry, may be eligible for benefits under the federal Trade Adjustment Assistance Reauthorization Act of 2015 (TAARA 2015). A petition filed on behalf of workers of MasterBrand Cabinets, Inc., Auburn, Alabama, was certified by the U.S. Department of Labor (USDOL) on September 24, 2018, according to Secretary Fitzgerald Washington, Alabama Department of Labor.The USDOL found that the workers may have become unemployed because MasterBrand Cabinets, Inc., is a supplier to a firm that produces and supplies directly to another firm component parts for articles, or services used in the production of articles or in the supply of services that were the basis for such certification. The petition covers periods of unemployment occurring on or after August 8, 2017 through September 24, 2020. Under the TAARA 2015 Act, displaced workers may be eligible for benefits such as training, job search and relocation assistance, and Health Coverage Tax Credit (HCTC). For additional information on the HCTC, they can visit the IRS website at www.irs.gov/HCTC.If workers have exhausted their cash benefits under other state and federal unemployment compensation programs, they could be eligible for additional weekly benefits equivalent to the amount they were receiving under other programs. To receive Trade Readjustment Allowance (TRA) benefits, workers must enroll in training within 26 weeks of the certification date or their last qualifying separation or a waiver of the training requirement must be granted by the state Employment Service Division of the Alabama Department of Labor.MasterBrand Cabinets, Inc., was also certified for Reemployment Trade Adjustment Assistance (RTAA). Employees who are 50 years of age and older, who obtain full time employment after their separation from the affected employer, may be eligible for training and allowances under the RTAA program.Washington stated that potentially eligible employees will be notified individually as soon as they are identified.For more information, contact Tara Hutchison (334) 242-8616 or Kelly Betts (334) 353-1548.